The Iceman is a further step on her path to becoming reacquainted with Hollywood. As Deborah Pellicotti, the unsuspecting suburban spouse to the film's titular hitman, played by a volatile Michael Shannon, it's a frank reminder of how powerful Ryder can be. "I've never played a person who existed without their blessing and them being there on the set," she says.

It is easy to make this presumption. After all, diamonds are the most popular precious stone, and we see them regularly incorporated in designer jewelry across all the major brands. But that is not to say that other gemstones dont deserve some recognition of their own.

The traditional attractions of Austrian skiing endure, of course. Its pleasant mountain villages remain, although many of them now sprawl at their edges; and some of the small, valley towns Schladming, for example, with its stunning, onion dome church have more charm than all but a handful of French resorts. Most of the villages are dominate